Epilepsy Ireland’s national fundraising week, Rose Week, takes place this week, until October 19th.
Epilepsy Ireland is the only organisation in the country who raise awareness of the condition which affects 40,000 people in Ireland today. Alongside their vital support services to people with epilepsy and their families on how best to manage the condition, Epilepsy Ireland also raise awareness of the condition and educate the public about epilepsy.
This work is co-ordinated by Epilepsy Ireland’s team of 11 Community Resource Officers who cover the entire country through regional offices based in Dublin, Kerry, Cork, Galway, Offaly, Limerick, Kilkenny, Louth, Sligo and Donegal.
While the organisation are supported through state grants, these do not meet the total cost of the services that they provide for people with epilepsy and for their work in educating the public about the condition.
Epilepsy Ireland depend on fundraising in order to support their work. In 2019, 34% of Epilepsy Ireland’s total income of €1,735,588 came from fundraising.
Rose Week traditionally would have been characterised by public facing local fundraising events to support Epilepsy Ireland’s work. However, due to the ongoing pandemic and in the interest of public health, Epilepsy Ireland are seeking support for the week online.
The pandemic has had a devastating effect on the organisation’s fundraising capabilities with a drop of fundraising income recorded at 52% for the period March 1st – Aug 31st. This is due to the loss of traditional events such as church gate collections, marathons and events organised by the organisation’s members & volunteers.
Throughout this period, the demand for the services Epilepsy Ireland provide has remained high. The organisation have been continuing their vital services for people with epilepsy and have adapted their services for online delivery. Epilepsy Ireland continues to offer support to people with epilepsy on managing their condition & to assist those who have been newly diagnosed.
Epilepsy Ireland are encouraging the public to follow their social media channels throughout Rose Week to learn more about epilepsy and their work; and to please consider donating during the week.
Follow the hashtag #RW2020 to join in on the conversation and should you require further information on Rose Week; wish to speak to your local Community Resource Officer about their work in your local community; speak to a person with epilepsy within the community; or require any further information in general, please do not hesitate to get in touch with Epilepsy Ireland Communications Officer Paddy McGeoghegan on pmcgeoghegan@epilepsy.ie to discuss this further.
More on Rose Week is available here.